Wallpaper cutting guide

ABSTRACT

A small, portable guide for cutting sheets from a roll of wallpaper or like material is disclosed comprising a cutting board; a pair of spaced apart material guide members attached to the board; the guides having their forward edges aligned; and a removable cutting tool guide bar adapted to be placed over an unrolled section of material from the roll against the board and against the aligned forward edges of the guide members. The longitudinal edge of the unrolled material is placed along at least one of the guide members and a cutting tool drawn along the guide bar to produce a cut perpendicular to the length of the roll. Optionally a second bar is placed beneath the unrolled material is alignment with the first bar for more accurate cuts.

United States Patent 1 Markert 1 Jan. 28, 1975 1 WALLPAPER CUTTING GUIDE [76] Inventor: William 0. Markert, 2 Robyn Ave.,

RFD No. 3, Manchester, Mass. 03103 [22] Filed: July 26, I973 [2]] Appl. No.: 379,461

[52] U.S. Cl. 30/294 [51] Int. Cl B26b 29/02 [58] Field of Search 30/286, 289,294, 124

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 197,901 12/1877 Sargent 30/294 X 697,902 4/1902 Tripp 30/294 x 2,013,893 9/1935 Matthews... 30/294 X 3,394,457 7/1968 Holder 30/294 3,543,627 Hearns 30/294 X Primary Examiner-Donald G. Kelly Assistant Examinerl. T. Zatarga Attorney, Agent, or Firm-James .l. Cannon, Jr.; John M. Brandt ABSTRACT v bers. The longitudinal edge of the unrolled material is placed along at least one of the guide members and a cutting tool drawn along the guide bar to produce a cut perpendicular to the length of the roll. Optionally a second bar is placed beneath the unrolled material in alignment with the first bar for more accurate cuts.

1 Claim, 10 Drawing Figures SHEET '1 BF 2 PAIENTEI] JAN28 I975 1 [WALLPAPER CUTTING cums BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Fieldof the Invention The invention resides in the field of paper or similar material cutting devices and more particularly those adapted to sever sheets from a roll of paper or similar material substantially perpendicular to the length of the roll. The invention is specifically directed toward a small, portable and inexpensive guide for detaching lengths of wallpaper for application in the usual decorative manner, making the matching of patterns and subsequent trimming relativelysimple and precise.

2. Description of the Prior Art A variety of cutting devices for severing a length of paper or similar material from a roll exists in the prior art. One common arrangement consists of a rod upon which the roll rotates combined with a pivoted weighted bar against which the paper is torn. Another is the well-known roll tape dispenser utilizing a serated edge to rip the tape. A similar technique is used in packaging rolls of waxpaper, foil, and other household goods. Guillotine style cutters are regularly employed to detach portions of either a sheet or roll by a scissorlike action. Additionally rotating wheel cutters which slide back and forth on a rail are in use for the same purpose. Y

In the prior art, those paper cutters and cutting guides which are inexpensive tend to make a rough and rather imprecise edge cut on the detached piece of the roll. Those guides and cutters which make a precise cut tend to be quite expensive and somewhat heavy. The present invention is particularly directed to a cutting guide for wallpaper hangers which affords a precise cut utilizing a readily available cutting tool and is very inexpensive to manufacture. In addition, the device of this invention is light in weight, portable for carrying from room to room, and simple and convenient in use, especially where pattern matching is critical.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention may be summarized as a guide for detaching portions of a roll of paper or similar material, particularly wallpaper. As described above it is comprised primarily of a pair of spaced apart guides attached to a cutting board. At least one of the guides has a substantial longitudinal edge. The forward edges of the guides are aligned to form a perpendicular to the longitudinal parallel edges of the guides. A portion of the roll to be severed is layed between the guides, which are separated slightly more than the width of the roll, and the longitudinal edge of the roll butted against the longitudinal edge of one of the guides. A hand held portable or removable cutting tool guide bar is placed over the unrolled portion of the roll and butted up against these forward guide edges such that a hand held cutter drawn along the bar will detach a sheet of paper or similar material perfectly perpendicular to the longi% tudinal direction of the roll. A second optional bar may be placed underneath the portion of material from the roll aligned with the first bar to more perfectly align the cutter perpendicular with the plane of the paper. 1

In hanging wallpaper, the traditional technique is to sever by tearing with a straight edge a number of sheets successively from a roll, each somewhat longer than the height of the wall to be covered. When applied, the ex-j cess overlaps the upper and lower moldings an amount determined by the length of the sheet and the position the sheet must occupy in order for the wallpaper pattern to register. After application, the excess is trimmed at both the top and the bottom.

The present invention, by providing a unique, inexpensive and portable apparatus, allows the top of the sheet to be pre-trimmed precisely and cleanly at a work area at floor level, resulting in savings in material and time. To apply a pre-trimmed sheet, it is only necessary to butt the top edge against the ceiling or molding for an exact fit. By eliminating top-trimming, a small but cummulative quantity of paper is saved from each sheet. Additionally the time required to climb a ladder, trim and clean up the waste is also saved. By employing the invention users have found that an extra room in three can be completed in a day by eliminating the top trimming step.

Precise pattern registration may also be accomplished in a more convenient manner than is allowed by the present technique of alignment on the wall after pasting. A certain amount of difficulty is encountered in attempting to align the pattern while the paper is wet, particularly the inconvenience of sliding a large sheet of paper over the wall surface. For example, some parts of the sheet may dry and stick faster than others, causing the sheet being applied to resist changes in position required when aligning on the wall.

By employing the invention, the patterns of successive sheets may be perfectly matched in a work area so that it is only necessary to butt the top edge of each sheet against the ceiling, or molding to obtain an instantaneous pattern match the entire height of the wall.

A further distinct advantage of this invention is the sharp, clean precise cut which may be produced by utilizing a cutting tool of the users choice in conjunction with the apparatus of this invention. Thus, in contrast to the prior art devices, a cutting tool such as a razor blade may be used if desired, yielding a much cleaner edge than that which would result from the tear bar arrangements.

Still further advantages of the present invention are that this cutting guide is simple, inexpensive and portable, thus contributing significantly to the efficient'use of time in paper hanging.

These and other features of the invention will be more fully appreciated from the following specification and accompanying drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the wallpaper cutting guide of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the base component of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the base component of the invention.

FIG. 4 is a front view of the cutting tool guide bar of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the bar of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a top plan view of the second cutting guide bar of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a front view of the bar of FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is a side view of the bar of FIG. 6.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of an additional embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to FIG. 1 there is shown a perspective view of an embodiment of the invention particularly useful for severing sheets of wallpaper as described above.

Parallel guide members and 12 are attached to cutting board 14 in this embodiment as folded up integral extensions of a galvanized sheet. The distance between the two guides is slightly greater than the width of a standard roll of wallpaper, about thirty-one inches. Forward edges 16 and 18 are aligned perpendicular with the longitudinal edge 20 or 22 of either of the guide members. A portion of cutting board 14 extends beyond the guide members 10, 12 to provide the surface for severing a sheet 24 from roll 26.

Cutting tool guide bar 28 manufactured from any suitable material such as wood is shown held firmly in place by hand against the forward edges 16 and 18 and down on roll 26 utilizing handle 30. A cutting guide edge 32 is formed by an extension 34 of galvanized material parallel to edge 36 of the bar. Optionally edge 32 may be the edge of the bar itself or any other suitable configuration as long as it is parallel to edge 36.

Edge 38 of roll 26 is carefully butted up against guide member 12 as shown but may optionally be aligned with the other member 10.

To sever any portion of the roll, it is now only necessary to draw a suitable cutter, knife 40 for example, along edge 32. Additional sheets may be detached rapidly by moving the roll 26 along the board to any desired point.

An optional second cutting tool guide 42 may be placed underneath the roll in exact alignment with the first 28 to provide a convenient arrangement for main taining the cutting knife 40 perpendicular to the plane of the cutting board 14 and to facilitate a clean cut with one pass of the cutting tool 40. Use of the second bar 42 eliminates any small errors which could accumulate from angling the cutting tool 40 away from the guide bar edge 32.

FIG. 2 shows a plan view of the cutting board 14 and both roll guide members 10, 12. Like. numbers also refer to like components of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 shows a side view of the cutting board 14 and one of the upright guide members 10. Like numbers refer to like components of FIG. 1.

FIGS. 4 through 8 illustrate side, front and plan views on the components of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 9, there is illustrated an alternative embodiment of the invention which functions exactly like the embodiment of FIG. I.

FIG. 10 illustrates in detail a preferred construction of the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 9. In this arrangement, one of the guide members is a peg 52, since only one longitudinal edge is necessary for aligning the edge of the roll 26. Here guide member 44 is attached to board 46 by a pair of bolts 48 and using nuts 50 to allow variation of the position of the guide member 44 on the board 46. Peg 52 provides the second guide which may also be varied in position by inserting it in any one of a plurality of holes 54 located in board 46 at the option of the user. As above, the forward edge of the longitudinal guide member 44 and the peg 52 are aligned perpendicular with the long edge of guide 44.

The guide bar 28 is used in the same manner as in the description above, the roll 58 aligned along guide 44, and the bar 28, pressed over the roll 58 and against peg 52 and forward edge 60 of guide 44 to yield the correct registration for a cut perpendicular to the long edge of the roll 58.

What is claimed is:

l. A guide for cutting sheets of wallpaper and like materials from rolls and the like comprising in combination:

a. a cutting board;

b. a pair of spaced apart material guide members attached to said board, one of said members comprising a longitudinal bar, up against which said unrolled material is butted. and the second of said members comprising a peg which may be varied in position by inserting it in any one of a plurality of holes located in said cutting board, the forward edges of said guide members in alignment perpendicular t0 the longitudinal edge of said bar; and

c. a removable cutting tool guide bar adapted to be pressed over said unrolled material and against said cutting board, said bar having two parallel longitudinal edges of a length greater than the space between said material guide members, the first longitudinal edge of said cutting tool guide bar for positioning against said guide member forward edges. the second for guiding a cutting tool over said unrolled material against said cutting board. 

1. A guide for cutting sheets of wallpaper and like materials from rolls and the like comprising in combination: a. a cutting board; b. a pair of spaced apart material guide members attached to said board, one of said members comprising a longitudinal bar, up against which said unrolled material is butted, and the second of said members comprising a peg which may be varied in position by inserting it in any one of a plurality of holes located in said cutting board, the forward edges of said guide members in alignment perpendicular to the longitudinal edge of said bar; and c. a removable cUtting tool guide bar adapted to be pressed over said unrolled material and against said cutting board, said bar having two parallel longitudinal edges of a length greater than the space between said material guide members, the first longitudinal edge of said cutting tool guide bar for positioning against said guide member forward edges, the second for guiding a cutting tool over said unrolled material against said cutting board. 